


The Force Unleashed: The Joral Chronicles

by Red_Leasia



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Legends: Force Unleashed - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Galen Marek - Freeform, Juno - Freeform, Juno Eclipse - Freeform, Original Characters - Freeform, Star Wars - Freeform, Starkiller - Freeform, The Force Unleashed
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-16 20:29:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 8
Words: 11,700
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11260401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Red_Leasia/pseuds/Red_Leasia
Summary: Starkiller and the Dark Clone are set on a collision course. If Starkiller prevails it means leaving the Empire behind and starting a new life with Juno outside the Empire and no one will ever know what he did. If the Dark Clone wins, Luke will never have stood a chance in getting close to his Father to bring him back.





	1. Chapter 1

_"I'm coming for you."_

_His face stared back him. Identical, in every way except for the malice and contempt. It was him should he ever join the Dark Side. The Dark Clone was his opposite…he pointed at Starkiller._

_"I know." Starkiller felt resigned. There was nothing he could do to avoid the confrontation. No where he could hide Juno._

_"My Master doesn't like to leave his business unfinished." The Dark Clone reached forward again with his hand outstretched. "I'll find you wherever you are." The connection broke between them…but the Force wasn't finished with him yet._

_Starkiller saw a few faces, kids he did not recognize in front of a home on a world that certainly wasn't this one. Only the certainty that he should go there permeated the vision._

_"Go there you must." It was Yoda's voice. He turned and saw the diminutive but powerful Jedi standing there._

_"You never told me who you were when we met." Starkiller said to him lifting an eyebrow._

_"Need to know you did not," replied Yoda. "And now as you said before…to the ends of the Galaxy if you must. And certainly you must. But what is required is not the ends of the galaxy, but the edges of the Empire."_

_"I don't understand." Said Starkiller._

_"Meet him you must if the Dark side is to fall. There is no chance otherwise."_

_"Vader?"_

_"No, yourself, or who you used to be. Him." The Dark Clone, there was no one else who could match that description. Understanding began to dawn on Starkiller. But he could not see the complete picture._

_"Famous you will never be," said Yoda again. His voice sounded sad, almost regretful._

_"I never wanted that," said Starkiller thinking of Juno. "I have to leave her."_

_"No," said Yoda, "She must go as well. What you have done not many will know but alone you will not be." He smiled and vanished. Starkiller drifted into an uneasy sleep. Juno was the last person he would ever want to endanger but it seemed that the Force was requiring just that._

 

The two men walked the length of the hallway. There was one long window letting the light in from the stars into the dimly lit hall as they walked the length of it. One was older with his white hair done up in a topknot, the other was a young man with brown hair cut short, hands clenching at his sides as he made a decision.

"Kota, I have to leave." Starkiller faced his friend, and master although you would never say their relationship had ever been one of master and Padawan. Starkiller had long been trained in the Force before Kota had ever met him.

The Older Jedi General had been preparing for a raid. He'd kept Starkiller's return a secret. Very few people knew he was alive. Even Juno had taken a reprieve for the moment after being debriefed by Princess Leia. Claiming the need to recover from her injuries, but promising to be ready in the moment she was needed, Juno Eclipse effectively had taken a back seat. There were no ships currently ready for command at the moment and she'd made it known she was content to pilot the Rogue Shadow for the time being. Her absence was noticed and felt the most by General Ackbar whom she'd recruited. The General hadn't dug too deeply, a fact that Starkiller remained grateful for.

"You can't run boy! We have a war, if you haven't noticed." Kota wasn't happy. The last time he'd said this to him, Starkiller had immediately returned for him after having a vision and they'd gone off to rescue Juno from Darth Vader together.

Starkiller hated what he was doing but he didn't feel like he had a choice. This was the path that was laid out before him and he was going to have to walk it.

"You don't understand. The dark clone is still out there." He tried again.

This sobered Kota up quickly. "Are you sure? I thought we destroyed them all." He paused. "You really believe there is another clone out there?"

"Vader escaped…" Starkiller took a breath. "He didn't escape alone or without help."

"Yes, but he was assisted by a Bounty Hunter." Kota crossed his arms, not really wanting to believe that Vader had cloned Jedi users but the evidence was standing in front of him telling him to reconsider.

"You know the Bounty Hunter wasn't the only one who assisted him."

When the General didn't respond, Starkiller continued. "I know he's out there." He paused. "Kota I've seen him. I need to draw him away. He's far more powerful…No one here stands a chance against him. Not even you."

Kota bristled at this. "I know I told you a Force vision this strong was probably a true one before…"

"He will come for me." Starkiller said firmly. "You guys will have Vader to deal with, but the clone will come for me. I've seen it. Vader is not going to just let me get away. He's always got a backup plan. He's always been one step ahead of us. Trust me when I say this. He is going to send the Dark clone for me." He paused again. "You know he doesn't like to leave things unfinished. He's meticulous, almost obsessively tying up loose ends, and always likes to be in control. He'll see this through until the end."

Kota said nothing. In the past he would have railed against Starkiller whenever the two differed on missions. He'd certainly done that on multiple occasions. While he knew the dark clone had existed he was not ready to admit it. They'd known the clone was one way of destroying the legacy that the original Galen Marek had left behind but for some reason the clone hadn't been seen by anyone living.

Yet….

Kota finally nodded…his face grim. The truth of what Starkiller was saying dawned on him. "May the Force be with you, boy." The last word was said with more affection than Starkiller was used to hearing, the last time he'd heard it from Kota it had been filled with derision and sarcasm.

Starkiller started to turn away when Kota stopped him. "Juno?"

"She's coming with me."

He nodded again, grimacing. "I'm losing you both."

Starkiller nodded, turned away and then turned around and awkwardly embraced the Old General. Kota who had never been one to give hugs returned it just as awkwardly. Neither had ever been the hugging kind. They broke apart and Kota raised his eyebrows at him.

Starkiller smiled and said, "She's rubbing off on me."

"Do you know how this will end boy?" Kota said suddenly. In Starkiller's mind came the echoing voice of Juno when she'd ask him, _no his template_ , the same question aboard the Rogue Shadow. "Will I ever see either of you again?" Again, he could hear Juno's voice asking the same question.

He shook his head at Kota not trusting himself to speak one last time. Kota nodded at him. He understood the pull the Force had on Starkiller. As much as he wanted to use the boys power against the Empire he could feel the Force drawing Starkiller elsewhere. The whispers of a new hope to face Vader had started as well as the rumors of other surviving Jedi coming out of the shadows. But Starkiller's path lay elsewhere and for whatever reason Kota knew he would have to let him go. Not that he had to like it. But he also knew when Starkiller's mind was made up there was no turning back.

He turned and walked away. A single tear slipped down the old general's cheek before he wiped it away and straightened his shoulders. They were both rubbing off on him. But he had a raid to plan. And they had their own much more dangerous quarry to flush out.


	2. Chapter 2

AJ awoke again the dream fading into the night. Connor also popped up from the floor wide awake where he was lying next to him. By instinct they both turned to each other even though neither could see the other very well.

"The same again?" Connor asked into the darkness.

"The man with the blue lightsaber?" AJ replied.

Connor nodded. For weeks they'd dreamed of the same man. Having the same visions together.

"What does it mean?"

"I don't know." Connor whispered. "What if it doesn't mean anything?"

"But they've started happening during the day." AJ replied. "They have to mean something. Won't people notice?"

Connor looked up into the gloom. "I don't know."

They could hear the breathing of BJ and Caohdan in their shared room. It was black but the light from Kelusia's twin moons Iblis and Ivaine cast a white light through the window. AJ could make out Connor's outline in the darkness.

"Both moons are out." Connor observed. "Maybe the old people are right. People act funny when both full moons are out."

"That's just women," AJ muttered. He laid back down and stared at the ceiling. His eyes drooped as he fell asleep. Once again the dream flared up.

The man sat on a tree branch in front of him, his hands up in a conciliatory gesture. He had brown hair and eyes, wearing a gray shirt with belts strapped around his chest for carrying his lightsabers. He stared at them holding up his hands and started to speak….

AJ's eyes popped open. A quick glance at Connor told him Connor had also seen the strange scene. They stared at each other.

"What does it mean?" Connor whispered into the darkness.

"Forget that part," said AJ, "Who is he? And when are we going to sleep normally again?"

The next morning brought all four boys to the river to fish. Connor and AJ were both groggy from waking up so much during the night, but BJ and Caohdan were none the worse for the wear.

His older brother and their cousins were holding their cane poles just like everyone else on the river. Caohdan was just not having any success. His lack of patience probably contributed to most of his failure. Not many five year olds have the patience to wait for a fish to bite.

He stared at the fish in the water, willing them to come closer to his bait. In his mind he wanted to just snatch the fish out of the water with his bare hands. That would show everyone that he could fish! He stared at the fish he could barely see hitting the surface, in their search for insects, and concentrated. The air prickled around him… he felt as if he were reaching out with his arm which was extended as the other hand grasped the pole... He ignored the rest of the group, any other people from Shantytown, the flies and gnats buzzing collectively around any moving targets…

…and concentrated on the fish.

And suddenly the fish came flying out of the water and hit him in the face. He stared at it, flopping on the bank. His five years of life had not prepared him what had just happened.

He awoke out of his reverie and dropped down and grasped the flopping fish by the tail grinning. He held the fish up in his hands. Suddenly he was aware of all the eyes staring at him. There were a few mouths hanging open downstream. He held the fish up to his oldest cousin BJ who was staring at him with a strange expression on his face.

"I got it!" He exclaimed joyfully. He couldn't understand why everyone was staring at him with suspicious expressions on their faces.

"What just happened?" One of the men stared at him, eyes narrowed.

"Well, there is something you don't see every day!" BJ shouted turning away to the other men fishing. "The fish trying to get away from you just leapt into his arms! I guess it is Caohdan's lucky day!"

There were some relaxed smiles. BJ grinned and turned back to Caohdan as the normal buzz of insects could be heard over the low monotone of those trying to fish the river.

"Not another word about it." On BJ's face was a trace of fear Caohdan had never seen before.

Caohdan didn't understand.

"But BJ, I could pull them out of the water with my mind," he started. "I'll show you, watch…"

"No!" BJ said taking the fish and grabbing Caohdan by the arm. "We're going. Now!"

His brother and cousin standing a few feet away nodded. They took their fishing rods immediately out of the water and packed up whatever fish they had caught into a small bucket. It wasn't much but it was something.

BJ was already walking Caohdan away from the river while Caohdan was still clutching the fish. He was protesting vigorously.

"But I could have pulled all of those fish out of the water for us!"

"Look you could but you shouldn't!" BJ whispered furiously, trying to keep Caohdan from talking too loudly. "Keep your voice down already!"

"Why?"

"Because you are a Force sensitive, we're all Force sensitives!" BJ waved his arms over his head in frustration. "I do not know how or why all four of us are. You know what happens to Force sensitives."

And Caohdan did know. Force Sensitives were a mysterious group of people, plucked from their families by the Empire's Inquisitors. Some people thought it was an honor, but those taken were rarely seen or heard from again.

Connor and AJ came puffing up behind them dragging their rods and fishing baskets.

"Not a word of this to anyone." BJ finally said to Caohdan as the other two boys joined them.

"But…" Caohdan still had so many questions.

"Not a word." BJ said firmly.

"Wait," he said, "looking at BJ again. "You can do it to?"

"Yes." BJ whispered. He gave Caohdan a hard look. "Didn't I just say that?"

It was tough being a Force sensitive after order 66 came through. Many took to hiding out at the edge of the Empire on the outer planets where it was easier to hide among the lawless or simply escape the Empire altogether. Going outside the Empire was another unknown in itself. There were plenty of other groups outside the Galactic Empire but no one was going to challenge the Empire directly. Hence the boys lived on the outer rim of planets on an under developed world called Kelusia.  
BJ was the oldest, his real name was Benjamin Joral but to his brother and their two cousins he was just BJ. His younger brother was named Connor Joral, and their cousins AJ or Aidan Joral, and AJ's younger brother Caohdan Joral. Connor refused to be called CJ.  
Their parents were long gone...  
At 12 BJ was in charge, he kept strict rules. No one outside their family was to know they had any Force ability. His biggest fear was being caught by someone who would turn them in to the nearest Imperial Post. In the past someone would have taken them to the Jedi academy. But with the academy gone, no one on a backwater planet in the outer rim of the Empire really knew what happened to anyone caught using the Force.

All anyone really knew was the Inquisitors came and went with the Emperor's blessing.

BJ was determined that they not be caught. They had no real future other than as outlaws but he was determined that their future would be one of their own choosing.

BJ alone remembered his parents the most, he remembered running from Inquisitors, escaping, arriving on Kelusia. Connor had been a toddler as had his cousin AJ. Caohdan had been an infant. They'd arrived on Kelusia without their parents as refugees. Many of those in the Shanty towns were all refugees from elsewhere.

Their parents had left the Jedi temple. They married sometime after that and had gone into hiding when the Order came through. BJ was never sure of the details completely.

BJ pushed the memory away of their deaths. HE did not want to remember how they happened. He knew they were gone. That's all there was to know. It was a burden he kept to himself. His brother Connor, and cousin AJ had snatches of memories of their parents but nothing as clear as BJ.

The Force had kept them alive, BJ had learned to use it out of necessity to keep himself and his sibling alive. Stealing milk and cloths for a baby was easy when you could just lift them out of whatever merchant had them. BJ promised that someday he would repay those he'd stolen from but leaving his baby cousin to be raised by strangers was not an option for him. Especially now in light of the fact that Caohdan was a Force Sensitive. BJ was, his brother and cousin both were. There had been no reason for BJ to believe that his younger cousin would remain untouched, so he held onto him instead of letting him be adopted into a new family. The fear that Caohdan would be "honored" with a visit from an Inquisitor was too much for BJ to bear.

And it turned out, he'd been right to do so.


	3. Chapter 3

The warm Kelusian sun warmed BJ's cheeks and the wind ruffled his brown hair. It was early yet and he was up making a few extra Imperial credits helping vendors set up shop. He'd be back later that day to help a few of them pack up again.

He had a quick mind and was hoping one of the vendors would ask him to be apprenticed to them. The Force made it easy to pack them up quickly, and it helped that he had ambition. Most saw him as a quick learning street kid and that is the way he preferred it.

Still a steady income wouldn't be amiss.

He loaded a box onto his back, held it in place with his mind and moved forward. Pilcha's earthen wares wouldn't take long and then he'd be on to Hara's leather and Ching's machine shop. All those merchants arrived at different times. Helping was easy.

A few hours later his pockets jingling he walked to the food market with a rumbling stomach. Helping in the markets was the best way to get news. Off worlders came and went. There were surprisingly quite a few as of late.

His belly growled loudly as he spotted an apple. It rocked slightly on the table as a large Imperial Vessel landed in the distance. BJ noted the ship with a nervous glance and then turned back towards the apple.

BJ glanced around to see if anyone would notice, lifted his right hand and the apple shot into it quickly. Feeling a little guilty over his theft of the apple he floated a decicred into its pot and turned away glancing around to make sure no one had seen what he'd done.

As he turned away a man bumped into him. "Oh excuse me!" The man said in an accent BJ couldn't place. BJ started to dismiss him as an Off-Worlder but the man stared at him with such an intensity that BJ felt as if he was being probed.

"It's all right." He started to turn away, the man's eyes burned holes into him. Suddenly he smiled. BJ didn't like the look of his smile. It was predatory.

He was a well-dressed man in a black uniform which generally signified a man of importance within the Imperial government. BJ did not know which part though from any of his insignias.

"I was rather hoping someone would point me in the direction of Di'Bashi's castle. I'm here on important business with him."

"It's there," BJ pointed towards the dark spires in the distance.

"Thank you," the man's smile did not reach his eyes. BJ shuddered looking for a polite way to break the conversation off.

Suddenly the strange man dropped a large bag of coins into BJ's hand, more money than BJ had ever seen in his life.

"My thanks," he said gruffly. Again the eyes studied him as if waiting for something and then with a shrug he turned away.

BJ swallowed hard, a bit shaken over the encounter. The bag disappeared into his pocket and he spied a bag of oranges. Putting the strange man out of his mind he strode over to the rare treat. He couldn't wait to bring them home to his brother and cousins.

There was a military post where clone troopers were stationed on Kelusia. They did mostly keep the peace but the man in charge, one Akeron Di'Bashi certainly didn't mind the illegal activities. While maintaining that he was loyal to the distant Emperor he maintained tight control of his own little Empire on planet Kelusia.  
The boys lived in a shanty town outside the main city of Dashed. The shanties were mostly constructed of duraplast and local wood cobbled together to form comfortable little homes. They shared such a home with the Jo'Baks, a family of three that allowed them to stay in one of the rooms.

AJ and Connor hunted in the forests. Kelusia did sport some impressive forests and plenty of game. If anyone but Di'Bashi had been in charge the place would probably have been a thriving planet. As it was it was a great place for hiding if you were a Force sensitive. There was plenty of wildlife and if you knew how to hunt and stay away from the law the odds were you were not going to go hungry.  
"What have you got this time?" Caohdan asked AJ as they approached the shanty house. BJ was in town and the two older boys had gone hunting. Caohdan stayed with a neighbor and their daughters.  
"Two Biktins!" Connor replied, smiling in triumph. AJ held one bird up and Connor the other. Caohdan smiled. "I'll get wood!"  
Em, the mother who they stayed with came out and saw their catch. "Will you be needing that cooked, then?" She asked smiling. AJ nodded and both of them handed the birds over.  
"Allana go with Caohdan and get some fire wood." Em Ja'bok smiled and sat down to pluck the biktins and prepare it to roast. Like many in the shanty town she was poor but she looked after the boys like they were her own. But she had no idea about their Force abilities. They'd kept that a secret and let her assume that the streets had made them extremely good at hunting. Life for the moment was good for all of them. At least right now they did not go hungry.  
Em had one daughter that lived with her. The boys were very fond of her and she them. Her husband Joran Ja'Bok worked in town as a mechanic for small air craft. It was a poor job but better than nothing. He had objected to the boys' presence until they started putting meat on the table. Then he said nothing, continuing to work every day for a few credits and coins, eating the game the boys provided albeit grudgingly. None of the boys trusted him, but he allowed them the roof and that was what they needed.  
BJ came in the door just as Caohdan and Allana returned with some firewood. Allana bounced over and hugged him shyly as he was the big brother to her, if not by blood then by situation. He grinned and produced a bag of cabbage and carrots for them. Allana groaned when she saw it. He grinned at her and tossed her the bag, which she caught with a grimace.  
"And now for my next trick," BJ said and popped out a bag of apples.  
Connor shot up grinning. "BJ, how did you manage that?"  
"Rich guy came in, paid a lot of coin for directions today." BJ smiled. "I was in the right place at the right time." He jingled his pocket. "Still some left over."  
AJ pointed to Em who was smiling as she plucked the second Biktin. "We didn't do so badly ourselves."  
Caohdan grinned and puffed out his chest. "And I was good today." Em smiled at him.

"Yes you were, very good Caohdan!"

That meant that he had managed to conceal his Force abilities. As much as they wanted to tell Em they didn't trust her husband Joran to keep their secret.  
There was a price on all Force sensitives. You find one, you let the outposts know. An Inquisitor traveled from the center of the Empire to collect them. Sometimes they just showed up to get you. BJ didn't know how they'd managed to stay hidden so long. He supposed there was some way to sense their presence. But Kelusia wasn't exactly important and was currently just a backwater world which served their purposes just fine at the moment.  
AJ was deep in thought. "What is it?" Connor asked him.  
"Who was the rich man asking for directions?" He said, a little fearfully.  
BJ shrugged. "Not sure, not someone official though." He didn't notice me. It went unsaid.

AJ continued to look down and BJ put a hand on his shoulder and whispered, "Dreams again?"

"Yeah…" AJ and Connor both had been having dreams of running into a man. They didn't know who he was and whether or not he was friendly but he always appeared to them in the woods. They knew that the vision came from the Force but were never sure what to do with suspected it was someone they should watch out for and avoid.

"Last night?" BJ asked.

AJ nodded. "BJ, I am not sure who this man is that we keep seeing. But what if he does show up? I don't think there is anything we could do to stop him."

BJ grimaced. "We'll see." He glanced around the home. "Let's go wash up."

The shanty town was dirty and dusty and BJ begged Em off to go have his brothers and cousins wash their hands for dinner. Allana was very busy picking up feathers and discarding them outside in a burn pile. The burning feathers smelled awful and the boys were wrinkling their noses in their hurry to get away from the stench.  
Washing their hands usually took them to the creek that ran outside the shanty town and into the forest. It was dangerous for anybody but BJ had once kept a large Feline known as a Madisra at bay with his Force ability. He'd been so afraid someone had seen them he almost took them all into the forest to live. The locals had blamed the mess they'd found there on the rutting season of some extremely large Bovines called Wobegangs that also inhabited the area.  
He turned to Caohdan. "We can practice for a few moments if you like, Caohdan."

Caohdan grinned and sat down in front of BJ. These were the moments he loved the most right now. He hated having to hide what he considered the best thing that had ever happened to him. BJ kept him at ease by taking him out under different pretenses so he could learn to control his ability.

He concentrated on a rock as AJ and Connor kept watch.  
The rock began to lift easily off the ground. Caohdan grinned, and BJ looked astonished. "Are you sure you haven't been practicing on your own?"

"I have not been practicing!" Caohdan protested. BJ paused for a moment as a strange feeling began to come over him. He felt almost compelled to believe Caohdan. More than that, he wanted to believe it more than anything ...he was almost certain of it in fact.  
He snapped out of it. "Hey! That is a mind trick used by Jedi! How did you do that?"  
Caohdan stopped for a moment. "I don't know. I just really wanted you to believe that I haven't been practicing."  
BJ nodded. He felt a bit disturbed. He wondered how strong Caohdan actually was, to be able to perform such a feat now. It was a trick he'd never tried himself...the rock was still floating in the air as footsteps sounded. "Someone is coming," Connor whispered. The rock clattered to the ground and Allana emerged from the grasses.  
"Mom says to hurry." Allana said. "Dinner is finished and there are troops out and about. You don't want to be caught out here after dark."

Di'Bashi didn't necessarily care about the Shanty towns outside of his City but he did maintain a strict curfew for the residents.  
All of the kids took off at a run, BJ bringing up the rear to make sure Caohdan kept up. Although he needn't have worried. Caohdan could sprint with the rest of them and BJ was slightly worried that his young cousin was using the Force a little more than he let on.


	4. Chapter 4

The next day brought clear skies to the Shanty town. Joran had already left for work bright and early. Allana was sitting quietly by the small fire, heating the remnants of the Biktin from last night.  
BJ was up dragging his brothers and cousins out of bed. "Heading off to the woods to hunt!" He called to Em. Normally he would have gone to the market place but the dreams his brother and cousin were sharing, the tired expressions on both AJ and Connor's faces, and his younger cousin's ability to persuade him yesterday made him want to take them out and lay some ground rules.

Joran too had been acting strangely. Not that Joran was a big fan of the boys. BJ's mind flashed back to the day they met. Em had greeted them warmly but Joran had almost forbidden them entrance to his home. If it weren't for the fact that all three of the older boys each had a Biktin in hand he would never have let them in. Proving they could help put food on the table for the rest of them had made it a little easier.  
Connor groaned but Caohdan followed eagerly out the door. His first hunt! He was more than excited. AJ followed behind his little brother still thinking over the "rich man" BJ had gotten money from.  
His intuition was telling him that this was important to them but he didn't know anything else. He was quiet as they entered the forest. Far from the shanty town they walked deeper into the woods. It was the only place they could practice with the Force without being seen although it was risky.  
"Caohdan tell me how often do you use the Force? How often do you use it to make you faster or stronger than you usually are?"  
Caohdan shrugged as he walked. "Usually just when I can't keep up." He admitted. "That's it. Everyone thinks I am a really fast runner."  
BJ sighed and turned to Connor and AJ.  
"Anyone nearby?"  
"Haven't heard or seen anything." Connor replied, while AJ just shook his head.  
"Ok." BJ looked at the tree in front of him. He reached out with the ability and grabbed a low level branched and snapped it off. Then he turned to Caohdan. "Your turn little man."  
Caohdan grinned and concentrated hard on the tree. The next branch up began to shake.  
"Don't tear it off," Said BJ patiently. "Think of it as a knife slicing through butter. It's just atoms anyway. Separate them."  
Caohdan nodded and suddenly a rent appeared in the tree and the branch tumbled to the ground, but instead of just tearing the branch off Caohdan had put a gash in the tree.  
"Too big of a knife, little brother," AJ commented smiling.

"BJ?" Caohdan said suddenly. "What's an atom?"

BJ sighed, his cousin's education was severely lacking due to their circumstances. He was certain all of them were behind but there was no school here. Unless you were apprenticed and learned a trade.  
Connor froze in place. "Biktin." He said excitedly.  
"Connor," BJ snapped, "we can get them in a bit, and we need to practice."  
Connor schooled himself with a grin. His stomach rumbled though and AJ snickered at him.  
Suddenly all of them felt a powerful presence. Having never sensed another Force user before they were all stunned. They didn't know what to make of it.  
They saw no one yet through the trees but no one could deny that this presence felt them and was heading toward them. It was reaching out to them, almost calling them.  
Even Caohdan sensed it.

"What is that?" Connor whispered fearfully.  
"I don't know," BJ replied reluctantly. Thinking of the man in the market, he made a decision. "But I think we may have to run for it."  
"I think it's the rich guy from earlier," AJ said, voicing BJ's concerns out loud. "Are you certain he didn't know who you were?"  
"He didn't sense me." BJ replied, but stopped. How much did any of them know about a well-trained Force user way out here? They were sitting biktins. He'd hoped they'd have more time to grow up and leave the planet on their own as there was no one to take children off Kelusia.  
"Run," he whispered. "Deeper into the forest."  
All of them ran, this time no one was hesitant about using the Force to get away. Augmented by fear and the Force each boy leapt through at a speed impossible for an ordinary man to exceed. The presence receded back from them for a time. It seemed to sense their sudden fear.

The forest grew dark and they all knew that on Kelusia there were plenty of creatures out after dark that you didn't want to meet. While they were confident they could handle it they weren't taking any chances tonight.  
"Climb a tree?" AJ suggested. Connor nodded but instead of climbing he vaulted up into the thickest limb from the ground. BJ opened his mouth and then shut it. Reminding them not to uses the Force was a moot point at this time. Someone had found them. The question was how long did they have?

They were on the run, and there were other things to worry about.

He vaulted up followed by AJ and Caohdan. The branch was wide enough to walk on, so they leapt higher.  
"We really should build a treehouse out here." Connor said quietly surveying the area. They were far from the town.  
"I don't think we'll be staying long," AJ said to him settling down. Caohdan came over and laid down next to his brother and put his head on his shoulder and started to cry. The older boys sometimes forgot that he was just five years old.  
"Will we see Em and Allana again?" he sobbed into AJ's shoulder. AJ wasn't sure what to say so he hugged him. BJ looked over at him.  
"I think it is better we stay hidden for a while little man. Safer for them anyway. We will only get them in trouble."  
They all felt the same as Caohdan though. In the complete darkness only Caohdan got any sleep after he cried himself out. The rest tossed fitfully, awaking at every noise.


	5. Chapter 5

The red dawn that greeted them brought the giant Wobegangs under their branches making the trees shake. The Wobegangs were giant fur covered creatures, with large tusks protruding from their lower jaw and shaggy brown coats. They stood taller than 3 men and had bad tempers. The boys sat still making no noise as the creatures passed. Startling them could cause a stampede and Wobegangs were perfectly capable of taking down trees.  
AJ stretched and wondered what the giant bovine tasted like.  
"Let's stick to Biktin." Connor said following his line of thought even as his stomach rumbled in betrayal.  
"There won't be much of those nearby with the Wobegang traipsing through," AJ muttered, his stomach growling in unison. He froze in place suddenly stiffening.

"What is it?" Connor asked turning around.

And then he saw him.

Across from them was a man. He had very short cut brown hair, brown eyes and his clothes were mended over and over. He wore a few belts around his waist from which hung to metal cylinders.  
Lightsabers? AJ wondered.  
"Good guess," the man said smiling. At the sound of his voice BJ and Caohdan woke up. The man held up his empty hands. On them he wore thin fingerless gloves over callused hands. "I'm not going to hurt you."  
"Who are you?" BJ demanded. He positioned himself in front of the other boys and made an attempt to look menacing.  
"You can call me Starkiller." The man said. He surveyed them. "Took me long enough, I didn't realize you'd go so far." He smiled.

BJ was still suspicious but suddenly he noticed that AJ and Connor were just sitting there with their mouths hanging open not making a sound. Both were pale.

"You!" AJ managed shakily as he turned to BJ.

Connor whispered. "It's him."

BJ glanced back at Starkiller. "What do you want from us?" He demanded.

Starkiller paused and considered his answer quickly. What did he want from them? Why I am here? "Short answer? I don't know. I know I am supposed to save some Force sensitives."

Connor nodded. His dreams made sense now…if the man was indeed saving Force Sensitives. "Are you with the Rebellion?" He asked suddenly.

Starkiller winced. "It's complicated…"  
"You'll take us off world?" BJ interrupted and was suddenly hopeful. This was their

Chance, their chance to get off of Kelusia, out into the black.  
"Yes if you want to come." Starkiller grew serious. "I wouldn't wait too long though...Kelusia is only a backwater because of its distance from the center of the Empire, it is rich in resources, and apparently Force Sensitives. The Emperor has turned his eye this way. I don't know why."

Secretly Starkiller wondered if he was the cause. He certainly never wanted to face the Emperor and Darth Vader again. He would not survive a third encounter.

Plus he was a loose end that needed to be snipped.  
They all looked up him with hope. "You can sense us." BJ said finally breaking the silence. "And if you can so can others."  
"Yes." Starkiller didn't lie.

"There was a man in the market yesterday, he came in off the Empire ships that have been landing here…he gave me a large bag of coins…."

"Where is it?" Starkiller asked suddenly, concerned. Any tracking device could be hidden in a bag of coins.

"I left it back with Em," BJ answered. "I didn't think about grabbing it, we wouldn't have had any use for it out here."

"I'm not going without Em or Allana," Caohdan said suddenly, having not said a word up to this point. Starkiller pivoted to face the five year old whom he'd forgotten was there for a few moments.

BJ was about to argue with him when Starkiller spoke up first.  
"Take me to them. That man could have planted a tracker in there to find you later."

Starkiller looked down below him at the immense creatures passing below. He could simply weave in and out of them to get back.

Connor looked down at the Wobegangs as Starkiller dropped down silently among them. They all cringed knowing the volatile natures of the Wobegangs in a way that Starkiller did not. Although he was perfectly still and the beasts took no notice of him yet.

BJ looked at the others and then dropped quickly down next to Starkiller and put a finger to his lips slowly swiveling his head. Starkiller followed his lead amazed at the huge creatures but not getting too close.  
"Juno." He spoke into his com. "I'm heading back your way. There are more than we thought here. Better make plenty of room."

The nearest creature froze in place and snorted. BJ brought his hand up and face palmed as several more beasts froze. It did not take much to set Wobegangs off and they appeared startled now. Starkiller froze for a moment, himself startled and looked down at BJ who motioned UP with his eyes. Suddenly BJ found himself being flung upwards into the trees violently landing in the branches next to Connor with Starkiller leaping up next to them. The others grasped the branches for dear life as the ground began to rumble. All knew what a Wobegang stampede meant.

"Juno to Starkiller, there seems to be a lot of movement in your area, several large creatures are stampeding, are you all right?"

"Tell her to shut it!" BJ snapped loudly as the creatures below grow more agitated and began to run.  
"Fine Juno!" Starkiller called into the Commlink on his wrist. "But can you wait to contact us again. You're setting the…the…"

"Wobegangs?" Connor supplied, grasping a branch for dear life.

"Wobegangs…off…just hold off while I get us out of here." He switched it off as the beasts came at the trees. "They're vegetarians I hope?" He said glancing at BJ.

"Yes," said BJ in a loud whisper, "but temperamental as a woman when both moons are in full face." The tree vibrated as the Wobegangs kept charging it.

"I have no idea what that means," snapped Starkiller. It was a phrase he'd never heard before but he assumed it was going to get ugly before it got better.

"Let's get away from here," AJ said holding Caohdan's one hand and the tree with another, "You know they won't stop for a while, we need to move away from, the direction they're going in."

"We're going to have to go down and through," said BJ wobbling. A loud crack sounded. "Then we can go up again, these aren't nearly big enough to hold us or hide us from them."

"You're kidding, right?" Starkiller asked. The branches were wide enough for them to stand on but not strong enough to stay standing?

"On three," said Starkiller but before he could even start to count the tree toppled over spilling them onto the ground. They all found themselves inside a herd of stampeding beasts who'd lost their target and were just now running for their lives.

Starkiller snatched up a screaming Caohdan and yanked the other three boys to their feet with the Force. "Run!"

"This way!" BJ pointed. Together they sprinted dodging and weaving between the animals' legs. He felt his lungs would burst and suddenly a familiar grove was in front of them. "There!" He shouted. He leapt up into the air using the Force managed to fling himself up. Suddenly Starkiller was there next to him dropping Caohdan into his arms as he turned and stretched out both hands and pulled. A startled Connor and then AJ came flying out of the herd and landed on the branch next to them.

"Absolutely quiet," BJ said to them in a whisper, "they aren't charging this way yet, so once they pass we can go." The creatures were moving away from them heading south.

It was a long wait. Caohdan stared up at Starkiller in awe in almost worshipful silence.

Starkiller sat staring at the passing Wobegangs in fascination. He'd battled many creatures before that he thought were terrifying. But these creatures attacking in a herd like this, he'd never be able to hold them all off. They were mindless once enraged. Lesson learned he thought. Find out as much about the local wildlife as possible before I go charging in.

BJ stared hard at him. He didn't need the Force to read the boy's thoughts. Was he their salvation or their doom? But the bad thing was, even Starkiller didn't know the answer to that question.

These were the boys from the vision but what now?


	6. Chapter 6

They entered the Shanty town sprinting.  
The first person they ran into was Em who grabbed them all in a furious hug and berated them despite their offerings.  
"I don't care how much food you brought!" She scolded. "I was worried sick!"  
Starkiller stopped and faced Em. Em was a short woman with long blond hair, gray eyes and glasses. She wore a pale white dress belted in the center over brown boots. Her sleeves hung down to her wrists loose, and other than a leather string which she used to hold her hair back she did not wear any other decoration.

She took in the dirty disheveled appearance of the boys and then the man who stood slightly behind them.

Em paled when she saw him. "Who are you?" She demanded.  
"You're a Force Sensitive." Was his reply.  
"So are you." She replied.  
"...what's going on?" Joran came in through the walkway. Joran was Em's opposite, tall and dark haired, none of her calm bearing, suspicion colored his features. He wore a tan shirt belted over brown pantss and almost identical boots with a small dagger slid into the side of his right boot.  
Everything was tense and quiet for a moment. "Em!" BJ whispered, "He can take us off world!"

Then their exchange hit him as he realized what they had said to each other. He was floored to hear that Em was a Force user, he'd never sensed it, and she'd never given a hint that she knew that they were. But then again he certainly wasn't trained in the Force either.  
Em looked at Joran. He hesitated.  
"How did there come to be so many Force sensitives here?" Starkiller asked sitting down making no move to draw his lightsabers. He held his hands up in front of him at all times to make it known that he was no threat. While he sensed that Em was a Force sensitive, Joran definitely was not. The man felt of suspicion and wariness. Starkiller put those aside…living here that was probably the norm from anyone.  
Joran sighed and sat down as well. "I suspect that many of the outer rim planets hold Force users hiding out from the Empire. How did you come to look for them?" Everyone tensed at the question.  
Starkiller looked down. "I talked with Yoda once. He said to follow my vision across the Universe if I had to. I did that, but I had a vision of something else. Do you know who Luke Skywalker is?"

"No," Em said bitterly looking at her husband. "I've heard of Anakin Skywalker, but not Luke. Are they related?"  
Starkiller shrugged. "I'm not sure. I'm heading out of the Empire with a few who want to go. That's a name I keep hearing whispered, a new hope."

BJ stood up then. "We're in."  
"BJ," Em said, "We should think about this."  
"No," said BJ, "I've been waiting for this opportunity for a long time. I want to take my family out and that means all of us." He looked at Em. "You guys too."  
"Well of course we're going," said Joran. "Allana is a Force sensitive too." AJ looked up. "What?"  
Em smiled. "Here we were all hiding from each other..."

"How?" BJ asked her. "How did you not know?"

"I don't know," Em shrugged her shoulders, "I was never very strong in the Force to begin with but…I think I've always known. Now that I think about it, I just always wanted to believe otherwise, so I never even thought to bring it up. It just wasn't important."

"NOT IMPORTANT?" Joran snapped. "That could have been the most important thing we could have learned about them. We could be attracting the Imperials here as we speak."

BJ shot a sideways glance at Caohdan and was just about to speak up when he suddenly decided against it. What do I really know about any of them? he asked himself. We didn't even know Em and Allana were Force sensitives until now.  
"When can we leave?" Connor said from the corner. AJ was next to him with Caohdan in front of him simply waiting. They were all looking to BJ waiting for him to make the decision.

Starkiller noticed this was surprised. He sneaked a glance over at BJ and noticed even Allana was watching for his thoughts. This kid was clearly a leader in the making, he thought.  
"Now if you're ready." Starkiller responded. "Let's go."

BJ nodded.  
Em looked over at Joran. He nodded to her. She turned back to Starkiller. "Let's pack a few clothes first and walk into the docks. We can't just leave from here, everyone would see us, and they'd tear apart the Shanties looking for us. I cannot be the cause of that."  
Starkiller smiled at her. "Spoken like a true Jedi."

Em hesitated. "Are there Jedi still out there?" It was a serious question and Starkiller didn't necessarily have a good answer for her.

"Not as many as you'd like." He admitted. "A few are still helping the rebellion." He hoped he didn't ask her about anyone in particular. He'd killed two Jedi, or rather his template had killed two, and blinded a third. He turned away hoping his feelings didn't show through.

In the next hour they were at the docks. The kids were all dancing with excitement even though BJ tried to keep them calm warning them not to even think about using any ability until they were safely off world.

Starkiller was amazed in the fact that they listened at all.  
Di'Bashi was at the docks with a huge guard surrounding a ship. Starkiller had hoped to avoid the Governor of Kelusia and slip away unnoticed. He hadn't planned on doing any fighting when he got here but it looked as though he was going to get some attention whether he wanted it or not. He doubted that Juno was very happy with him at the moment. Keeping the Rogue Shadow from being seen was her job. It was still the best ship to slip away undetected. She managed to keep it in top condition despite their being on the run.  
Sighing he walked right up to the guards and said. "Is there a problem with the ship?"  
The guard turned. "A stolen vessel apparently. What business is it of yours? Move along."  
Starkiller nodded and moved back towards Joran and Em. "Their thoughts are abuzz with the possibility of Force users. Not sure what's tipping them off but it's about to get really bad here. I need you to take the kids out of here."  
He spoke into a commlink on his wrist. "Juno, I'm handing my commlink over to a man named Joran. He's going to take everyone to a safe location to be picked up. Take off, and wait for my signal, I'm going to provide a distraction."  
The link buzzed. "Galen...be careful, no big heroics."  
"Don't worry."  
He handed the link over to Joran. "Are you sure you want us to run?" Joran said quietly.  
Starkiller nodded. "Trust me, I've had much worse. Get them out of here. I can take care of this alone."  
Joran nodded in return, and the group moved off, but not before being noticed.  
"Where are you going," an all-white clad storm trooper said grabbing BJ by the arm. BJ started to pull away when the storm trooper screamed as his arm sliced off. It was a clean slice done neatly, like a giant knife through butter.

Caohdan was there next to AJ, his face screwed up in shock over what he had just done. His jaw hanging open for the moment no one moved.

BJ was the first to recover.  
"Run!" He yelled grabbing Caohdan by the arm. Caohdan was jerked off his feet still staring at what he'd just done to the storm trooper, the blood pooling from the arm on the ground. The Stormtrooper screaming as the other men in his unit stared around stupidly for a moment trying to figure out what just happened and where exactly the threat was coming from.

"Force sensitives!" Screamed Di'Bashi. The white haired, balding governor pointed a black glove in their direction. Only Starkiller remained between them and the running boys. The rest of the crowd had scattered at the sight of spurting blood.

They sprinted along the streets towards the Shanty town which was the fastest way towards the trees. There was an explosion behind them. BJ skidded to a stop with Caohdan the others running into him. He took a quick glance and noticed with some surprise that Starkiller was still standing at the center waving his lightsabers in a blue blur. He'd thrown the entire guard and Di'Bashi backwards off their feet. No one was pursuing them, they had a much bigger target on the docks now. Clone trooper bodies were piling up and BJ wondered if they would see Starkiller again after this.

They kept running.


	7. Chapter 7

They hit a clearing in the woods and Joran sent a message through the commlink. They had nothing but the clothes on their backs. Everyone was breathing hard.  
"Do you think he's all right?" AJ asked huffing from the run.  
BJ panted. "I don't know. Did you see that explosion?"  
A ship suddenly dropped into the clearing over them and the shuttle opened. A blond woman stood at the entrance. "Where is he?" She asked concerned.  
"He said he was coming." BJ answered.  
She nodded, "get in quickly." She spoke into her wrist. "Proxy take off as soon as the door is closed."  
They scrambled aboard with Juno instructing them with where to sit. She didn't bother with any formalities simply jumped into the pilot's seat and the craft began to rumble as it shot up towards the cold recesses of space.

A Metallic droid who had been steering from the right side of the ship let of the controls as she took them. It turned and surveyed the group. "Master," He said towards his own wrist. "It seems you've brought back more than you bargained for here." He cocked his head as if he was listening even though this was unnecessary. No one else heard the reply. Juno glanced over at him with a raised eyebrow and Proxy nodded at her.

BJ felt a thrill through his gut when he saw the black. This is what he'd been trying to do for years. He hoped that the man who'd helped save them survived. On the other side of the room, AJ and Connor sat having a muted conversation.

"It's him." Connor was saying.

AJ was nodding. This was new territory for them both. A vision that came to pass, and meeting the man they'd both literally been dreaming about for weeks. "He'll be back." Said AJ with a confidence that no one else was sharing.

"Why do you say that?" BJ said turning to look at them.

"We've seen it," said AJ nodding towards Connor. AJ at least felt it was time to start taking their visions seriously. Connor after a moment nodded in agreement.  
Juno waited in orbit for a few moments when a small craft pulled out into space near them. Whether she heard the talk behind her she gave no indication. Her eyes were glued to the craft in front of them.

"Juno. I'm still here." It came out of her commlink, barely audible to the rest of them, but sigh of relief went around the small cockpit they were squeezed into.  
Juno visibly relaxed. "Get on this ship right now, so we can get out of here."  
"You got it." He sounded almost cheery. She'd take him to task for scaring her again later. She watched as the small ship docked with theirs and after a few moments Starkiller's familiar face appeared in the small crowded cockpit, but before he could say a word Juno was in his arms. He pulled her close in a tight grip.

There was an embarrassed silence from the rest as they watched the two embrace.

BJ studied Juno for a moment. Her blonde hair was shoulder length and pulled back into a pony tail. She wore a green flight jacket over a tan shirt, but it was open in the front due to her belly being slightly protruding. She's pregnant, he realized. Her blue eyes and pale skin were in stark contrast to Starkiller's dark hair, eyes and tanned skin.

"You're still alive?" That was Joran.

Suddenly pulled out of their moment, Starkiller released Juno and swiveled around to face the group of people he'd taken off of Kelusia. He recognized them all except for the man, Joran. Joran was the only one he hadn't seen in his visions on the strange world.

Juno laughed and moved away from him. "Let's go."

"You're good?" He said in a low voice to her as she moved back to the pilot's seat on the left and eased herself into it.

"I'm fine," she said evenly. "I'm pregnant, not sick. Stop worrying for five

minutes."

Starkiller scratched his head and turned to the droid next to her. "Proxy?"

"No one is following." The droid stood up and came forward out of the pilot seat on the right. He was a free walking robot with metallic covering, but was unlike anything they had seen anywhere else. Even Em had never seen such a droid in her earlier years spent at the temple.

"Where are we going?" Em asked. They were all squeezed into the cockpit which was barely big enough to contain them all.  
"Out there," BJ pointed out past the edge of the Empire's reach. He looked at Starkiller who smiled at him. "Out past the furthest stars." There was an excited edge to his voice when he said it. The ship turned around as Juno entered the trajectory. She smiled to herself as she heard the boy's response to the other woman.

And again, Starkiller wondered if he was their salvation or their doom.


	8. Chapter 8

Connor awoke in a sweat.  
The nightmare had left him shaken. He turned to look over at his older brother BJ sleeping next to him. In his dream he saw BJ being swept onto the shoulder on a black dressed figure carrying a red light saber and carried off. It didn't make sense, they were alone on the platform and out of nowhere he snatched up BJ.  
They were currently safe aboard the Rogue Shadow with Starkiller and Juno Eclipse somewhere else aboard the ship and their other friends/family from Kelusia.  
Connor Joral wanted to shrug it off as a bad dream. That he was just afraid of losing his brother.  
The arrival at the Dak'ti spaceport was uneventful. It was another planet on the outer rim. A little more populated than Kelusia with a larger presence of Imperial Storm Troopers.  
Starkiller was at the door with Juno next to him, speaking in whispers. He turned to them waiting impatiently by the door.  
"There is a dark presence here," he said finally. "It's not strong. But I don't want our presence advertised either. We want to get in and get what we need and get out."  
"Can't they sense us?" BJ asked.  
"They may." Starkiller replied slowly. "Which is why I'm going alone." He nodded to Juno.

"But..." BJ couldn't resist, he'd never been off of Kelusia since he could remember. "Wouldn't it be better to have some back up?"  
Starkiller looked at him. "I've found that it's not a good idea in most cases."  
Juno walked over and put a hand on BJ's shoulder. "He'll be fine." Her expression was unreadable and BJ wondered if she was telling herself that as much as she was telling him.

Starkiller emerged into the streets of Angwat on Dak'ti. He moved towards the shops letting the Force tell him their locations. He had never been to Dak'ti and he couldn't shake the fact that there was a dark Force user here somewhere. It wasn't a strong presence he knew but it could tie back to the Emperor. Maybe just an Assassin, although what one would be doing out here, he didn't know. Perhaps a rogue Force Sensitive…he hoped. Such a person would not want to be found and would stay hidden. Worst case an Inquisitor.  
They were still in the outer rim on the farthest edge of the Empire. It was entirely possible that it was a visitor from outside the Empire. Again such a person would not want to be caught here.

He rolled the possibilities over in his mind. In and out, he said to himself.

BJ paced inside the Rogue Shadow. He was used to being in charge of his family and didn't like having to wait. He didn't mind Starkiller going out for them but he resented being left behind.

Proxy was maintaining the ships course while Juno was taking a rare break from the pilot seat. She'd promised Starkiller that she would. Not that she felt the need just yet.  
Juno sensed BJ's impatience and came to stand next to him. "Starkiller knows what he is doing." She said quietly.  
BJ looked up at the pilot. "Are all Jedi like him? Because if they are, I wouldn't mind being one."  
Juno winced. "There are not many Jedi like Starkiller. No one actually that I know of. But do yourself a favor. Don't call him a Jedi, he doesn't want to be one."

BJ was surprised. "Why?" All the stories traded about The Order made them larger than life, or evil, or good depending on the speaker.

Juno shrugged. "In the past Jedi lived alone except for their Padawans at the temple but they never married unless secretly." Apologetically she smiled at BJ. "He was more than adamant about not giving me up. Not even for what Kota called the greater good. And he wanted to marry me."  
BJ took this in. "Do you know where we are going?"  
She shrugged. "No, but I trust Starkiller with my life. He's saved me many times, on many occasions."  
"Why did he save us?"  
Juno paused. This was the part she wasn't sure about. "As far as I know, he met with Master Yoda. Yoda told him to rescue any Force Sensitives we found...we opted not to tell the rebellion that Starkiller was back...and... well we are supposed to be keeping low profile."

Juno paused, again not sure of how much she should tell. There were still things she didn't understand. The nature of the Force itself for instance. "The Force brought a few visions, let's just say he recognized you when he saw you. There are other things coming together. I'd have to let him explain himself."  
"What do you mean back?" BJ asked. Her story did not make a lot of sense to him just yet.  
"He is officially dead." Juno admitted..."as am I."  
"Oh..." BJ was burning with curiosity now but something told him that it was painful for Juno to talk about it, even if she was smiling at him. There was a sadness in her eyes that wasn't there when Starkiller was around. He recognized it though.

Loss. Unbearable loss.

Something he was all too familiar with.  
"Can we at least go on the landing pad and stretch our legs?" he asked again. "We can always stay on the landing pad."  
Joran came into the room. "I'll go out with them. I want to see some sun, even if it is only for a few moments." He looked tense and Juno wondered if it was just nerves.  
Juno relented. "Stay at the landing pad." She intoned.  
_

Joran was outside in an instant with the children in tow. Em joined them on the dock smiling in the sun. Her husband Joran was just as impatient to be out and about as they were. He stretched and glanced around.

"What is it?" Em asked him pleasantly. She took his hand. "You seem a bit stressed."

Joran did seem a bit out of sorts, he was somewhat pale and kept glancing around. "I'm fine," he said. "Just want to be off the ship that's all."  
BJ looked around his eyes taking in the scene. They'd never been to another planet before. They were all silent listening to the bustle of the city around them.  
Caohdan broke the silence in his five-year-old voice. "Who is that man watching us?"  
Joran turned in an instant to see a man dressed in black a few docks over watching them. Connor was stunned for a moment. His dream came back to him in a rush, his brother tossed over a black clad shoulder. Dangling as he was hauled into a ship…  
A minute later the man in black waved at them and smiled. Joran waved back and the tension broke. "Who was that?" AJ asked a little worried.  
"I have no idea," said Joran. "But look he's unloading children of his own. Maybe he was just glad to see another family."  
Indeed there were two boys with the man clad in black who had turned back to checking the things being loaded into their ship. The elder was human and the younger Torgrutan.  
Connor relaxed. Caohdan and Allana had started a game of tag and BJ resumed taking in the sights. There was something familiar about the man that he couldn't place. He briefly wondered if he'd seen him before and then dismissed it. They were on another world, and space was a big place.  
AJ kept his eye on the family a few docksides over. The man had disappeared but the two boys remained on the dockside.  
Starkiller returned at this moment loaded with supplies he towed behind him. Starkiller seemed wary and surprised to find them all outside the ship.  
"What's going on?" He asked quickly looking around seizing up the situation.  
"Just stretching our legs," Joran replied nervously.  
Something however was wrong... Starkiller couldn't quite put his finger on it just yet. There was a trickle of the Dark Side nearby.  
"Back inside quickly," he said, glancing around.  
Everyone ran inside except Joran who was protesting vigorously that everything was just fine.  
"Go!" Starkiller yelled again. He couldn't quite shake the feeling that something wasn't quite right. He ran inside and did a headcount.  
He did the head count again. They were missing one.  
Connor was the first to notice..."where's my brother?" He shouted.  
Before Starkiller could stop him he was out of the ship again just in time to see BJ being bodily carried into the ship at the dock by the man dressed all in black.  
Connor watched helplessly as his dream unfolded in front of his eyes. Starkiller came out behind him and seizing up the situation reached out and grabbed the ship with the Force. Connor looked at him in shock as the doors were prevented from closing. By now quite a crowd was gathering to see what was wrong with the ship. Imperial troops were pouring in.  
Starkiller could have leveled the place but Juno had run out and put a hand on his shoulder. "Galen, low profile remember?" She said quietly misery on her face. She didn't like the situation either but he was supposed to be dead. "We'll follow them."  
"So we just let them go?" He said more harshly to her than he'd intended.  
"No one said anything about that." Juno said. "But we have to get all of these to safety. We can follow him and maybe get them somewhere else."

He relinquished his hold on the ship which suddenly shot into space to the protests of the Storm Troopers running in. There was nothing they could do however.  
"I don't like it," Starkiller said at last turning to her. "You don't know what happens to Force sensitives picked up by the Empire. But I do."

Juno was taken back by his angry tone but she knew it wasn't her he was angry with but himself.

"Master, if it is an Inquisitor, he may not return to the middle of the Empire right away," Proxy's voice came through his comm. Proxy was still in the front of the ship. "He will skim the outer rim using his halocron looking for more Force Sensitives."

Starkiller nodded to himself.  
Connor stood staring up at him with tears in his eyes. "I saw this happen." he sobbed.  
That stopped Starkiller in his tracks. "You saw the future?"  
"I thought it was just a dream." Connor whispered. He stared at the ground. AJ put a hand on his shoulder.  
Starkiller stood looking down at him for a moment. "Come inside," he said as the other ship took off into space. "We need to follow them."  
Juno raced up to the cock pit to help prep the ship with Proxy at her side. Starkiller sat deep in thought next to them in the back. Em and Joran were in the meditation room with the kids who were all upset at the loss of BJ. The atmosphere in the ship was a somber one.

Suddenly Starkiller appeared in the doorway of the meditation room.  
"I thought we'd have more time before I needed to start any kind of training." Starkiller said to them. "But it seems like you are going to be tested a lot sooner than I thought. I should have realized..." He paused. "You have to start training to defend yourselves now. That way something like this…you need a fighting chance."  
Em was now holding a sobbing Connor in the corner with AJ at his side.  
Starkiller came over to him and put a finger under his chin. "Hey, best way to get your brother back?," he said, "Learn to fight for him."

"How do you know we'll get him back," Connor asked.

"I've seen it," said Starkiller. He had too, they had not yet reached the place where he'd face the Dark Clone. That much he was certain. But what he did know was that BJ was there too.


End file.
